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Request to buy this photoAdam Cairns | DispatchClockwise from bottom: carnitas tacos, tostado with barbacoa, an assortment of drink options, and a chicken tamale from Phatt Taco at 50 N. High Street in Downtown Columbus.

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Becerra is the fellow behind Phat Wraps, a quick-serve sandwich shop focused on fresh healthy
foods and eco-friendly practices, which launched four years ago at 10 E. 12th Ave. across from the
Ohio State campus.

This month, he quietly closed the sandwich shop to convert it into Phatt Taco, a
California-style Mexican fast-service restaurant that, like its predecessor, is also focused on
in-season, fresh ingredients and healthy foods.

Phat Wraps reopened as Phatt Taco Aug. 14. It's Becerra's second Phatt Taco location. He
opened his first Downtown, at 50 N High St. in the former Fresh 50 space, in March.

Becerra, a Northern California native, said there are "super taquerias on every corner"
there.

"I wanted to bring that to Columbus with authentic burritos and tostadas at a price point that
competes with Chipotle,” he said.

“It's a risk and I have lost some sleep over it, but we decided to make the switch.”

The Phatt Taco menu is also inspired by real Mexican food, as in what the people who live in
Mexico City are eating.

“They're not eating tamales in the financial district. They're eating really cool,
cutting-edge stuff. There is a whole new generation of Mexican food and I wanted to tap into it,”
Becerra said.

The menu consists of tostadas with choice of protein, such as Atlantic cod and chicken. Phatt
Taco also serves tamales, vegan cookies, Mexican sodas and juices, and veggie and fruit smoothies.

The fresh salsas and sauces bump the food up to another level.

They include a mild tomato salsa, an avocado and cilantro sauce and a spicy habanero lime
mayonnaise.

Becerra is also using seasonal fresh salsa. In summer, there is a blueberry tomato salsa. In
fall, Phatt Taco will serve an apple and pear fresh salsa, and in winter, the feature will be a
pumpkin maple salsa with jalapeno and cilantro.

“The approach is to keep things fresh and to be clever with sauces,” he said. “Not enough
restaurants use that to their advantage.”

The Downtown location features a more extensive menu because it has a larger kitchen, but
many of the items are the same at both locations.

Becerra hopes that now that Phat Wraps has been converted to a Phatt Taco, he will be able to
expand.

“It's easier to manage two like restaurants than two separate (concepts),” he said. “It can
work to our advantage. Now we can make things in bulk for two places. We can be a lot more
efficient, and I'm hoping that will allow us to have a third or fourth store sooner.”

Phat Wraps is not gone forever, either. Becerra is looking to reopen it in another part of
town, one that is more receptive to their message of fresh food and environmentally-friendly
practices.

“Phat Wraps wasn't closed because it wasn't a good idea. It closed because it was just not in
the right location,” Becerra said. “We've had a lot of disappointed people walk in and wonder what
happened. It comes down to basic economics.”

“Campus is a great place for healthy food,” but the fresh ingredients and eco-friendly
accoutrements such as compostable boxes came at a cost, Becerra said. Students and others in the
campus area often are strapped for cash, and they gravitate to whatever’s least expensive.

Phatt Taco has a lower price point than Phat Wraps did.

It's also a nod to Becerra's roots in corporate food service at companies such as Abercrombie
and Fitch.

“My goal there was to make ethnic foods fresh, cool and hip, and that is what I intend to do
here,” he said.

“We want to get out of the 'food in a bag' mentality of fast food and have a place with good
music and hip art so you can sit down and get the whole experience. We want people to walk away
with the feeling that Mexican can be cutting-edge. It isn't what they think it is.”

Off the menu

The Taste of Dublin, which features food from dozens of Dublin area restaurants, will take
place from 6 to 9 p.m. Sept. 17 at the Conference Center at OCLC, 6600 Kilgour Place in Dublin.
Tickets for the event are $35 per person. For tickets or information, go to
www.DublinChamber.org/TasteofDublin.

Bibibop, the Korean fast-casual concept owned by the same local restaurant company as
Charley's Grilled Subs, has opened at 1281 Polaris Parkway.

Obit file

Talita's, 2700 N High St., has closed. Acre, a farm-to-table restaurant, is planning to open
in the space this fall.

Dispatch restaurant columnist Denise Trowbridge can be reached at
onrestaurants@dispatch.com.